Before the SATs, the tech billionaire heir was dumped by the school’s Prom Queen in the harshest way possible. I was sitting nearby, gnawing on dry ramen, and leaned in toward him while he stared blankly at his textbooks. "I look like her. Want to date me instead to make her jealous?" He was silent for a moment, then handed me the bouquet of roses meant for her. I took his money with a clear conscience. I demanded a hundred thousand a month. He didn't say a word. He wired me two hundred thousand. After we got married, he fulfilled his marital duties four times a week like clockwork—punctual, efficient, excellent service. Everyone said Julian Thorne had found true love. Until one day, his assistant whispered to me: "That new secretary Julian hired? Rumor has it she was the Prom Queen back in the day. "Ma'am, Mr. Thorne seems very fond of her. He even gave her your favorite lounge..." 1 I went after Julian Thorne for one reason: money. He was a hopeless romantic, the kind who showered his girlfriends with cash. While I was starving and surviving on instant noodles, I envied the Prom Queen, Sarah, who wore $200,000 diamond earrings before she even graduated high school. I couldn't understand why she dumped a billionaire like Julian to run off with some broke scholarship kid. So when Sarah slapped Julian and stormed off, I blocked her path at the classroom door. "Did you guys really break up?" She looked at my worn-out thrift store clothes with disdain and shook off my hand. "Yeah. We're done." "Can I chase him then?" She looked me up and down, laughing out loud. "Sure, go ahead. If you actually land him, I'll give you these earrings." I stared at the $200,000 earrings Julian had given her and nodded. But at the post-graduation party, when she saw Julian walk in with me on his arm, her smile froze. When Julian went to the restroom, she requested a song for me. The lyrics were all about "cheating sluts." The room went silent, everyone staring at me. "Bunny, you're pathetic," Sarah sneered. I knew exactly what Julian saw me as. But I still popped a bottle of champagne and poured the entire thing over Sarah's head. Then I snatched the earrings off her. "A bet is a bet. If you didn't want me to date him, you shouldn't have gotten engaged to that broke guy." "Bunny Lin!" Sarah screamed and lunged at me, but a strong hand pulled me behind a broad back. Julian took the slap meant for me. He dragged me out of the club and didn't say a word all night. I figured his heart still ached for her. I knew my place perfectly. I quietly followed Sarah's Instagram. Every time she posted a new outfit, I bought the same one. I’d wear it on the nights we had sex. Every time he saw me wearing Sarah's style, the emotion in his eyes was unreadable. I knew he secretly checked her Instagram too. Looking at me was like looking at a ghost of his past love. My best friend, Chloe, was furious for me. "You're his wife! Not her shadow!" But I thought it was fine. I asked for $100k a month; he sent $200k. I got greedy and asked for $300k. He sent $500k. Who cares about love when you live like this? I came from a home with no love and no money. If there was a chance to get rich, I’d grab it, dignity be damned. While Julian was still interested, I had to play my part well. On our first anniversary, Sarah updated her Instagram. She got a butterfly tattoo on her neck. I cried from the pain but spent ten hours getting the exact same tattoo. When Julian walked out of the shower and saw the tattoo peeking out from my purple lace slip, he froze while drying his hair. "What's wrong? You don't like it?" "Don't do that again." He showed no interest in my butterfly. "And throw away all your purple clothes." My heart sank. Purple was Sarah's favorite color. Did he get tired of me cosplaying his "one that got away"? Was my job as a substitute ending? "I mean, it hurts," he said, flicking my forehead. "Even if you don't copy her, I'll still give you money." The next day, the maid took away all my purple clothes. I hated purple anyway. The maid filled my closet with elegant black dresses. I touched the expensive fabric— Wait, did Julian know I liked black? But if I didn't imitate Sarah, how would I keep my job? So, I tested the waters and asked Julian for $800k. He gave me a black card. No limit. Customized with "Mrs. Thorne." While shopping with Chloe, she asked curiously, "Didn't you say you'd do five years, grab the cash, and run? The five years are almost up. When are you divorcing him?" I stared at a baby outfit in the window and fell silent. 2 I had been Julian's substitute for five years. I didn't know what loving someone was supposed to look like. I only remembered that before my mom left with another man, the thing she did that made me happiest was knitting me a scarf. Now my fingers were covered in band-aids, and the scarf was finished. But Julian didn't seem to need it anymore. Because today was our scheduled "couple's night," and he was thirty minutes late. I fell asleep waiting on the couch. I was kissed awake. "Sorry, the partners added some last-minute clauses. I'm late." Julian unbuttoned his shirt, his breath hot but controlled. For the first time, I pushed him away. "When are you planning to divorce me?" His breath hitched. "What are you talking about?" I looked up at him. "I know she's back. You even gave her my favorite lounge at the office. "I checked. My access card doesn't work for that room anymore." His muscles tensed. "Julian, don't overthink it. I won't cling to you. I don't want a huge settlement, just give me..." He was already on his phone, his tone colder than I'd ever heard. "Secretary? What secretary? "And what about the lounge? "Do personnel changes happen without my approval now?" On the other end, the HR director’s voice trembled. "Mr. Thorne, she showed us photos of you two dating in high school. She said the Madam stole her man... "Mrs. Thorne does look like Ms. Sarah, and those photos were definitely of you, sir. We thought it was your instruction..." Julian's expression was icy. "Blacklist Sarah from the entire industry. I want Mrs. Thorne's access to the lounge restored in one hour. "And you—go to finance and pick up your severance check." The HR director tried to explain, but Julian hung up. I looked at him in shock. He turned and hugged me, kissing me hard. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I haven't been at headquarters these past few days..." I believed him. He was always flying around the world. But no matter how far he went, he never missed our four nights a week. I was still unsure, gripping his shirt tight. "Blacklisting your 'one that got away'? Aren't you afraid she'll be heartbroken?" "What 'one that got away'?" His kisses made me breathless. "I only have you." "Are you... confessing?" "Yes." "Then, Julian." I hugged him back fiercely. "Who am I to you?" He paused, then kissed me even deeper. "My wife. The boss." My body trembled. "Then I'm really going to act like the boss from now on." "You always should have." That night, neither of us slept. 3 My knitting skills improved. I unraveled the old scarf and made a bigger, warmer one. But Chloe sent me a video. In the clip, Julian was leaving a mansion in the Hamptons after a meeting. He walked past Sarah, holding a black umbrella. Since being blacklisted, she had nowhere to go. She couldn't even pay rent. She was soaked, her purple dress clinging to her skin, outlining her curves. She looked at him through teary eyes in the wind. "Julian..." Sarah's voice trembled. Julian paused for a split second. Then he walked past her without looking back. "Julian! Have you forgotten everything we had?!" Sarah screamed, but Julian didn't turn around. I breathed a sigh of relief. He knew his duty. But I underestimated Sarah's resolve. The storm raged all night. She stood downstairs all night. Until she collapsed. A black umbrella appeared in my view. Sarah struggled to open her eyes, looking up at the person holding the umbrella. Julian was dry, his pale face emotionless. But the umbrella tilted gently toward Sarah. Julian flew back to New York the next day as planned. But he gave that Hamptons mansion to Sarah. "Bunny, what do we do? Julian never spends money on anyone but his woman!" I thought for a moment. "Since he says I'm his wife, I'll handle this the way his wife should." That same day, Sarah was kicked out of the mansion. And that day, Julian didn't come home. It was the first time since our marriage that he missed our night. I called him a dozen times. He didn't answer. The next day, he came home looking exhausted. His eyes were bloodshot. "Did you order Sarah to be kicked out?" I didn't dodge. "Yes." "Who gave you the right to be unreasonable?" I was shocked by the accusation in his tone. I looked up. "You mean, as your wife, I should tolerate your ex-girlfriend living in our property?" Julian didn't speak. He just threw his phone at me with a video playing. On the screen, Sarah was being dragged into an alley by a group of men, her purple dress torn to shreds. Julian's voice trembled. "If I hadn't arrived in time, Sarah would have been raped!" I looked at the video coldly. "What do you want me to do?" "Go to the hospital. Apologize to Sarah." "Julian." I pushed the phone back. "I will not apologize to a mistress." "Mistress?" Julian seemed surprised I used that word. A sneer I'd never seen before curled his lips. "If we're really keeping score, you're the mistress, aren't you?" My breath stopped. He ignored my shock and stormed out. The door slammed for the first time. I sat alone on the couch until late at night. Messages from friends kept popping up on my phone: [Bunny! What's going on? Why is Julian skipping meetings to stay at the hospital with another woman?] [They say she's Julian's first love. Is it true?] [Bunny, get to the hospital! Your husband is slipping away!] I didn't reply to any of them. Instead, I packed my bags and waited for Julian to return three days later. He saw my suitcase and chuckled lightly. "What's this? Playing the runaway wife?" I handed him the divorce papers. "Let's divorce. I don't want the settlement money." His hand, holding a tea cup, froze. 4 He flipped through the agreement page by page, his expression serious. His hands were trembling slightly. "Divorce? Who's going to give you that kind of money?" "Thanks to you, Mr. Thorne, I won't starve." He paused. "Fine. Divorce. But you have to return every cent I spent on you." I froze. Five years as a substitute... I had spent a decent amount. Seeing me hesitate, Julian's smile relaxed a bit. "It's okay if you can't pay it back. As long as we don't divorce..." "Done." He blinked. I am someone deeply insecure about money. No matter how much I had, I never spent recklessly. Even with nine figures in my account, when Julian wasn't around, I ate ramen with two eggs. Five years. Income: hundreds of millions. Expenses: two million. I handed him my bank card, then felt around and took off the $200,000 earrings. That covered the rest. "I won these earrings from Sarah in a bet, so they're technically mine. Here. That settles it." I took Julian's hand and placed the earrings in his palm. As I turned to leave, he dropped the earrings and grabbed my wrist. "Don't go!" "I didn't really mean for you to pay me back!" The eloquent CEO was suddenly speechless. "Julian, stop blocking me..." I was impatient, but when I turned around, I froze. A tear hit the back of my hand. I stared at him in disbelief. "You... are crying?" "I'm sorry." His eyes were red. "Don't do this to me." I had never seen a man like him cry. If the paparazzi caught this, Thorne Corp's stock would plummet. So I sat down and listened to his explanation. Turns out, he hadn't been at the hospital these past few days. He asked his friends to send those provoking messages because he thought I had arranged for those men to assault Sarah. He couldn't accept that I would do something like that. I could kick her out, but I couldn't be ruthless enough to have a gang of men violate another woman. But he still took Sarah to the hospital and visited her. Because he didn't want me to get sued. "Calling you a mistress... I was just angry. I'm sorry." Julian's eyes were red. I was silent for a moment. "Julian, you really hurt me this time." Pain flashed in his eyes. "But I can give you one chance." His eyes lit up. "Julian, I want you to cut all ties with Sarah. Send her away. Far away." "Okay..." He gripped my hand tight, like he was holding onto a lost treasure. "I promise."
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